The invention relates to rotisserie cooking devices and, in particular, to a planetary spit arrangement for rotation of spits carrying food to be cooked in a rotisserie.
Rotisserie devices are well known in the art for grilling and cooking meats such as chicken. The rotisseries typically include at least one spit upon which meat to be grilled is placed. The spit is typically moved in a circular path past heating elements in a cooking chamber to effect grilling of the meat supported on the spit.
To ensure more even grilling, planetary spits have been provided which turn about their longitudinal axis in addition to moving in a circular path within the cooking chamber. The planetary spits typically include a gear mechanism positioned on one end of the spit which meshes with a gear mounted in the oven to effect rotation of the spits as they are in turn rotated in the cooking chamber. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,136,933 to Derakshan, U.S. Pat. No. 4,214,516 to Friedl et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 3,125,015 to Schlaegel disclose rotisserie devices incorporating various types of planetary spit arrangements.
The number of moving parts in prior art planetary gear arrangements complicates assembly and disassembly of the system when cleaning or repair is required. The close tolerances and precise gear alignment further impede efforts to remove parts from the system and require precise manufacturing processes at increased machining costs.